A Quote by John Travolta

I was always a character actor, basically, that sometimes looks like a leading man.

John Travolta

Quote Topics

Actor Always Basically Character Character Actor Leading Leading Man Like Looks Man Sometimes

Quote Author

John Travolta
American - Actor
Born: February 18, 1954

I'm an actor. I'll take a lead if it's offered. The really good actors can fill a character, no matter what the role is. A good leading man is a character actor; a good character actor can be a leading man.

Edward Herrmann

I have a problem with the term 'leading man.' It's so limiting; it involves not upsetting anyone. Obviously, we have anti-heroes now, but if we're talking about the two tropes - character actor and leading man - I would so rather be a character actor. That's why I have a career.

Jimmi Simpson

I was never really a character actor - I was a leading man who was always cast as a character. I wanted to be Jack Nicholson or Jean Gabin.

Robert Shaw

How you look is part of what acting is, but the way I look at it, every actor is a character actor. Someone once told me at a casting, 'You're a character actor in a leading man's body,' and I can live with that.

Santiago Cabrera

I'm a character actor, but I look like a leading man.

Val Kilmer

I always knew I'd be more of a character actor than a leading man, and I always wanted to take that and run with it.

B. D. Wong

[And on going from character to leading actor] I don't approach anything differently; I just approach it as a character. I'm always astounded at the fact that I've ever played a leading character in anything [Laughs]. And my wife concurs with that, frankly. She always thought I would be, at best, the wacky neighbor on a sitcom, so this is all just a surprise and a joy.

Steve Carell

It's properly scary playing a leading man. Growing up, I always wanted to be a character actor.

Rafe Spall

As a young actor, I was advised to bide my time. Back then, there weren't good roles for someone like me. There were handsome leading men and character actors for smaller supporting roles. But I was told to hang in there, and it was good advice. We're all character actors now. Even a handsome man is a character actor at my age.

Jim Broadbent

The ability to stretch my range into all genres and characters is something I take great pleasure in doing. I thoroughly enjoy it. I consider myself a character actor, though some think of me as a leading man. As an actor, I love shifting gears from character to character, and the more range I can expand, the better.

Brian Tee

I've never thought of myself as a classic leading man. I'm a character actor who happens to play leading roles. Come on, look at me. I'm really Desperate Dan.

James Nesbitt

I think every leading man wants to be a character actor, and every character actor wants to be a leading man.

Bruce Boxleitner

I have played some wonderful leading roles on stage and had the whole 'China Beach' years where I really played a leading man on that. That was a fun change for a character actor. But I'm perfectly happy going back to building my gallery of memorable character roles.

Robert Picardo

I started off as an actor thinking that I would be this Romeo, this dashing leading man. It turns out that I'm a character actor.

Alessandro Nivola

I was never a leading man. I've always been in the outer concentric circles in the company, being a character actor, which is a good place to be. It gives you that diversity.